Dark Night Belgian Rye | Millstream Brewing Company

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One of the strangest beers i've seen. It literally pours as thick as motor oil - an obscene amount of body to this beer. Once the head dies down (15-20 minutes later) the beer is spectacular. The viscous mouthfeel actually helps this beer standout. Its sweet but not cloying, balanced by a slight tartness and roasted/grilled fruit character. A bit of dark roasted, bitter chocolate and red wine oak-like spice balance it out and compliment the heavy mouthfeel. Surprisingly delicious.

Appearance- This dark brown body is so close to being black. The head is mocha colored that just leaves a slight ring around the glass.

Smell- There is some bread malt and slightly sour fruit. Maybe some gooseberry and grape. And of course, an earthy Belgian yeast comes through.

Taste- The flavors start with some coriander and slight chocolate. Then some of the clovey yeast starts to fill the mouth. The bready malt and sour fruit profiles come out near the end of the drink. Not bad, but it is not very exciting either.

Mouth feel- At least the mouth feel is great. It is so big and chewy. And it goes down very easily thanks to the creaminess.

Overall- I wanted to really like this offering, but there is just not enough going on. A beer can't be great on the yeast profile alone.

The chocolate and sour fruit that is in the beer is a start, but they really need to seal the deal with it. Make those flavors big!

Minimal activity visible in the murky, mahogany fluid. Maybe it is more active than I can tell, because there is a lot of suspended yeast throughout the shoe tulip, not just on the bottom. And it came with the initial pour, not jus from the bottom. But, there was a finger of light tan head, good retention and thick lacing. ...with time it clears some, the color becomes more attractive with some reddish hues, but there is still plenty of yeast in it. But, really, is appearance really worthy of a description this long?

Not a lot going on in the nose. Some dark fruit, a little booze....Maybe a bit of malty sweetness. But it's all hard to find. Disappointing.

Tastes better than it smells, but still is not anywhere near elite. The dark fruit is prominent, Belgian yeasty character is recognizable but subdued. It has some modest bitterness that seems stronger than it is compared to the relative mildness of the other flavor elements.

Carbonation is somewhere right around just right, or maybe just a little bit on the low side. It is rich and extremely thick and chewy. It is highly viscous, and feels much thicker at 8.5% than many much bigger brews. It's smooth, and finishes with just a little bit of bitterness on the back end.

Being originally from Iowa and pleased to see the craft beer industry doing bigger and better things in Iowa, I am always hopeful when I try a new Iowegian beer. But average is really the best I can say about Dark Night, and that might even be a bit generous. I wouldn't suggest going out of your way for this beer, and I probably won't bother again. It's unfortunate when the mouthfeel is the best part of the beer.

A - Pours a deep brown and looks extremely viscous--quite unexpected. Has a finger of off-white head composed of coarse bubbles. Thick, impressive lacing on the glass, which I would expect considering how thick this beer looks.

S - Has a bready, crisp, corriander-like aroma that's immediately noticeable. Mild coffee-like notes. The rye is definitely well represented in the nose.

T - Malty, with an almost minty crispness up front. Towards the middle it becomes very dry and has a hint of roast coffee. Extremely sweet and malty all the way through the finish with a touch of tanginess.

M - Despite the viscosity of this beer, it's not overly syrupy. The finish is quite dry (aided by the ample amounts of rye they must use in this beer). Thick mouthfeel and pleasant carbonation.

A: Pours a translucent, copper-brown color with one finger of tan head. Some retention and lace.

S: Rye coming through here, also some spicy yeast aromas.

T: Toffee, caramel, a little dark fruit, pepper and cinnamon. Not a lot of rye but still a good flavor. Tiny bit of alcohol on the finish.

M: Substantial body but the carbonation keeps it almost fluffy, very nice.

O: Pretty pleased with this. Not world class, but definitely solid and worth having again. Millstream has not really done a lot of Belgian styles, only their (very tasty) Witbier so I'm pleased to see them continuing to explore territory that is new for them.

Dark Night fulfills my wish & avoids putridism. Plenty of intentionally shriveled grapes, prunes, figgy, quite altered from the nose; if this were a woman, she'd be 104. Underneath is a residual sweetness that clashes like Mideast Peace. Belgian ghosts & heady sugar round this one out. I'm a few ounces in & ready to head to a beer of a different color. Really thick & increasingly unpleasant; I couldn't get through the whole bottle.

Drinkability: I don't like dubbels so I wish I could have just gotten a single.

Picked up a 4 pack at the brewery over Thanksgiving. I didn't get much of the rye they say is in there, it mostly tasted like a dubbel with dark fruits and lots of earthy flavor. It doesn't hit the spot with me, so the last bottle will probably be mixed with something.